Income tax preparation system for traveling taxpayers

ABSTRACT

A system for determining travel deductions includes a city rate table identifying allowed per diem expense rates for each city. Cities visited, durations of stay and expense reimbursements received from the taxpayer&#39;s employer are input to the system. The system calculates a total of all per diem expenses and for offsets reimbursements received against the total to determine an incidental expense allowance. For use with merchant sailors, a ship location table with city rate codes for each day of a tax year for a plurality of ships is compared with the sailor&#39;s input ship names and starting and ending dates for work on each of the ships. A system for truckers and bus drivers includes a GPS tracking system that continuously provides vehicle locations to the system for calculation of per diem expense allowances when coupled with a daily vehicle use table and receiver code and vehicle number correlation table.

RELATED APPLICATION

The instant application is a Continuation-in-Part of U.S. applicationSer. No. 09/934,629, filed Aug. 21, 2001 and currently pending.

FIELD OF INVENTION

The invention pertains to automated income tax preparation systems. Moreparticularly, the invention relates to tax preparation systems designedto handle the extensive and complex calculations relating to taxpayerswho travel regularly as part of their employment, such as merchantseamen, airline pilots, flight attendants, truckers and bus drivers.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Various types of systems have been developed for handling travelitineraries and income tax preparation; incorporating a number ofdifferent technologies. U.S. Pat. No. 6,009,408 issued to Buchanan isdirected to automated processing of travel related expenses. Computersystems associated with the Internal Revenue Service can be linked withthe travel information processing system by a suitable communicationsubsystem collects information supporting tax returns from customers.Because the taxable income of a particular customer may often be reducedby the amount of travel related expenses incurred by travelersassociated with customer, customers may request that receipt informationkept in travel information processing system be sent to IRS system.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,237,499 issued to Garback, is directed to a computertravel planning system. A computer based system for processing travelrequests directed to a specific venue from individual members of asponsored group is provided. The system comprises a database containinga venue file including information regarding the specific venue, a groupmember file for each individual member of the group, a travel policyfile containing information on pre-selected vendors of various travelservices, and a city code file containing codes corresponding to aplurality of city airport locations. The database includes a travelpolicy file that contains information on pre-selected airline carriers,pre-selected room accommodation providers, and pre-selected groundtransportation providers.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,948,040, issued to DeLorme et al. is directed to atravel reservation information and planning system. Menus generated bythis system enable flexible user inquiries accessing selectablegeographic, topical, temporal and transactional data records andrelational processing. Some menus provide further capabilities: e.g.,routing, topical searching, searches of event calendars, almanacs,appointment books, related itinerary schedule, trip budgeting issues,and travel arrangement availabilities for other goods/services offers.An online computer aided routing system enables input of selectabletravel origin, destination, and waypoints to compute travel route,available transportation services, costs, options, and schedules. Thesystem provides the capability to determine the mode or modes of travelrequired to reach each destination, make the reservations associatedwith the travel, find the accommodations and activities available, plustake advantage of diverse, special offers for goods and services fromparticipating providers.

U.S. Patent No. H1,830 issued to Petrimoulx et al. is directed to asystem for use-tax determination. The system relates to computerimplemented tax preparation and tax submission accounting, and thesystem is directed to providing a system that enables use-tax accrualand determination. The system provides a machine for use-taxdetermination which has: (A) transaction record acquisition logic foracquiring transaction information characterizing purchases of goods andservices and generating transaction records; (B) use-tax logic; and (C)tax rate acquisition logic for acquiring tax jurisdiction codes, atleast one inclusive accounting group registry respective to taxes, andtax information respective to the tax jurisdiction codes for pluralityof state jurisdictions, and generating a data schema with data elementsdescribing the inclusive accounting group registry, tax jurisdictioncodes, and tax information.

While other variations exist, the above-described systems for travelplanning and tax return preparation are typical of those encountered inthe prior art. It is an objective of the present invention to provide asystem that can determine the per diem expense allowances for a taxpayerrequired to stay overnight for work purposes in any city identified bythe Internal Revenue Service. It is a further objective to provide ameans for determining the cities visited by a merchant seaman based uponthe identity of his ship and his dates of employment upon it. It is astill further objective of the invention to provide means to preparecomplete printed tax returns including a printout of the travellocations with appropriate rates for the taxpayer, relevant codesections underlined, etc. It is yet a further objective to provide anaccurate system that will permit preparation of travel-related taxreturns with substantially reduced manual effort on the part of taxpreparation personnel.

While some of the objectives of the present invention are disclosed inthe prior art, none of the inventions found include all of therequirements identified.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention addresses all of the deficiencies of prior art taxreturn preparation inventions and satisfies all of the objectivesdescribed above.

(1) A system for determining travel deductions for taxpayers who stayovernight in cities remote from their homes as part of their employment,includes the following components. A city rate table is provided. Thecity rate table identifies allowed per diem expense rates for a giventax year for a plurality of cities as identified by a city code. Meansare provided for inputting and maintaining data in the table. Means areprovided for inputting cities visited and durations of stay for ataxpayer. Means are provided for inputting expense reimbursementsreceived from the taxpayer's employer. Means are provided forcalculating a total of all per diem expenses based upon the city ratetable and the input cities and number of days of stay in the cities.Means are provided for offsetting the reimbursements against the totalto determine an incidental expense allowance.

(2) In a variant of the invention, a client information table isprovided. The client information table includes a taxpayer's name,address, zip code, Social Security number and a work code. A USA Statestable is provided. The States table includes each state's name, a stateID code, a lower 48 state code, and an IRS center code. The city ratetable also includes a tax year, a city code, combined meal andincidental rate, full rate, and high cost city code. A city name tableis provided. The city name table includes the city code, city, state IDcode, and country name. Supporting schedules are provided. Thesupporting schedules merge data from the client information table, theUSA States table, and the city rate table with the input cities anddurations of stay for the taxpayer. Means are provided for inputting andmaintaining data in each of the tables.

(3) In a further variant, an airport table is provided. The airporttable includes an airport identifier code, an airport name, city codeand country name. When a location is input using either of an airportidentifier code and an airport name, the appropriate city is determinedfor use in the supporting schedules.

(4) In yet a further variant of the invention, an airline table isprovided. The airline table includes an airline name and an airline IDnumber. The airline table permits data merged with the clientinformation table to be sorted by airline.

(5) In still a further variant, an IRS service centers table isprovided. The IRS service centers table includes an IRS mailing addressfor tax return submission, an IRS mailing address for submittingestimated tax payments and an IRS ID code. The IRS service centers tableis merged with the supporting schedules to determine an address to maileither of a taxpayer's federal tax return and a taxpayer's federalestimated tax payments to.

(6) In another variant, a state service centers table is provided. Thestate service centers table includes a state income tax mailing addressfor tax return submission, a state mailing address for submittingestimated tax payments and a state ID code. The state service centerstable is merged with the supporting schedules to determine an address tomail either of a taxpayer's state tax return and a taxpayer's stateestimated tax payments to.

(7) In still another variant of the invention, a zip code table isprovided. The zip code table includes a five-digit zip code, acorresponding city, county and state. The zip code table is used toverify the zip code input in the client information table and to providethe taxpayer's county. The zip code table is used to generate mailinglabels for the taxpayer's state and federal tax returns.

(8) In yet another variant, an attachments table is provided. Theattachments table stores links to IRS and state tax publication pages,tax year and work code. The attachments table is compared to the clientinformation table to determine appropriate publication pages to includewith the taxpayer's tax returns.

(9) In still another variant, a meal rate percent table is provided. Themeal rate percent table includes the tax year and meal rate percent. Themeal rate percent is used to reduce the meal rate allowed.

(10) In yet another variant of the invention, further supportingschedules display a taxpayer's travel computations and provides means tocalculate the taxpayer's travel deduction based upon the plurality oftravel calculation rates allowed by the IRS. The further supportingschedules provide means to enter the expense reimbursements receivedfrom the taxpayer's employer. The further supporting schedules providemeans to optionally decline use of the meal rate percent table to reducethe meal rate allowed. The further supporting schedules provide means toprint out IRS publications and revenue procedures related to thetaxpayer's occupation. The further supporting schedules provide means toprint out an IRS rate sheet for each city visited. The rate sheets areprinted in descending order based upon the taxpayer's travel deductionfor each city visited with the city highlighted on each sheet.

(11) In a further variant a plurality of customizable document templatesare provided. The templates are selected by the system based upon taxyear, work code, combined meal and incidental rate, incidental portionand full rate applied and an amended return code. The templates includea taxpayer's name, Social Security number, tax year, occupationdescription, legal justification for claiming travel deductions, eachcity visited, applicable deduction for the city, a total traveldeduction figure, expense reimbursements received from the taxpayer'semployer, meal rate percent for the tax year, a meal rate percentreduction amount and a remaining amount available for deduction.

(12) In still a further variant, a ship location table is provided. Theship location table includes city rate codes for each day of a tax yearfor a plurality of ship name codes. Means are provided for inputtingnames of ships on which a taxpayer has worked and starting and endingdates for work on each of the ships. Means are provided for determininglocations and durations of stay for the taxpayer based upon the shiplocation table and the input ship names and starting and ending datesfor work on each of the ships.

(13) In yet a further variant, a shipping company documents table isprovided. The shipping company documents table includes a shippingcompany ID code and a pointer to a shipping company document file name.A shipping companies table is provided. The shipping companies tableincluding the shipping company ID code and a shipping company name.Means are provided for printing the shipping company document.

(14) In still a further variant, a ship names table is provided. Theship name table includes a ship name code, the ship name, the shippingID code and each ship's e-mail address.

(15) In another variant of the invention, other supporting schedulesmerge the ships location table and the city rate table to provide mealand incidental rates and full rates for each city visited. Means areprovided for determining the highest meal and incidental rates and fullrates applicable for taxpayers traveling between cities for more thanone day.

(16) In still another variant, a series of data entry templates isprovided. The templates include the ship locations recorded in the shiplocation table for names of ships associated with each shipping companyname. The templates permit rapid entry of ship locations for shipsfollowing identical routes, the routes having different starting dates.

(17) In yet another variant, means are provided for reviewing the travelstart and end dates for any input ship name and tax year.

(18) In a further variant, a merchant sailor schedule table is provided.The merchant sailor schedule table includes the taxpayer's name, theship name, the trip start date and the trip end date as recorded on thetaxpayer's U.S. Coast Guard Discharge Papers. The merchant sailorschedule table is used in conjunction with the ship location table toprovide the incidental portion of meal rates and full rates for eachcity visited by the taxpayer in a tax year.

(19) In still a further variant of the invention, means are provided forprinting a ports of call statement illustrating the location of a shipfor each day of a tax year.

(20) In yet a further variant, means are provided for accessing theclient information table and the merchant sailor schedule table toprovide a listing of all of the taxpayers associated with any shipduring a tax year and the means for contacting the taxpayers.

(21) In another variant, means are provided for displaying achronological listing of all of the U.S. Coast Guard Discharge Paperdata input for the taxpayer for a tax year to the merchant sailorschedule table to determine if any travel days are unaccounted for.

(22) In another variant of the invention, means for identifying alltasks associated with the preparation of a tax return are provided asare means for identifying all results associated with the performance ofthe tasks. Means are provided for linking the results to a subsequenttask. Means are provided for determining the skill level of a taxpreparation worker required to complete each task as are means foridentifying the skill level of each tax preparation worker. Means areprovided for assigning each uncompleted task to workers of the requiredskill level as are means for indicating which worker will work on eachtask. Means are provided for indicating completion of each task forremoval from the system.

(23) In still another variant, the means for inputting cities visitedand durations of stay for a taxpayer further includes a globalpositioning system (GPS) receiver affixed to a taxpayer's vehicle. Thevehicle has a unique vehicle identification number and the receiver hasa unique receiver code. The GPS receiver receives location waypoints forthe receiver. A GPS receiver correlation table is provided. Thecorrelation table includes the vehicle identification number and thereceiver code. A vehicle use table is provided. The vehicle use tableincludes the taxpayer's name, Social Security number, vehicleidentification numbers and dates of use for each of the vehicleidentification numbers. Means are provided for inputting and maintainingdata in the tables.

A data relay is provided. The data relay passes location waypointsreceived from the coded GPS receiver to a data collection system atpredetermined intervals. A mapping system is provided. The mappingsystem accesses the data collection system and the city rate table anddetermines and stores a highest per diem cost city code within apredetermined distance of the waypoints during a given day for each ofthe receiver codes. A data analysis system is provided. The dataanalysis system accesses the GPS receiver correlation table, the vehicleuse table and the mapping system to determine and store the highest perdiem cost city code for the taxpayer for each day of a tax year.

(24) In a further variant of the invention, a global positioning system(GPS) receiver is carried by a traveling taxpayer. The receiver has aunique receiver code. The GPS receiver receives location waypoints forthe receiver. A receiver use table is provided. The receiver use tableincludes the taxpayer's name, Social Security number, GPS receiver codeand dates of use for each of the receiver codes. Means are provided forinputting and maintaining data in the tables. A data relay is provided.The data relay passes location waypoints received from the coded GPSreceiver to a data collection system at predetermined intervals. Amapping system is provided. The mapping system accesses the datacollection system and the city rate table and determines and stores ahighest per diem cost city code within a predetermined distance of thewaypoints during a given day for each of the receiver codes. A dataanalysis system is provided. The data analysis system accesses the GPSreceiver correlation table, the receiver use table and the mappingsystem to determine and store the highest per diem cost city code forthe taxpayer for each day of a tax year.

(25) In yet another variant, a client information table is provided. Theinformation table includes a taxpayer's name, address, zip code, SocialSecurity number and a work code. A USA States table is provided. TheStates table includes each state's name, a state ID code, a lower 48state code, and an IRS center code. The city rate table further includesa tax year, a city code, combined meal and incidental rate, full rate,and high cost city code. A city name table is provided. The city nametable includes the city code, the city, the state ID code, and a countryname. Supporting schedules are provided. The supporting schedulesmerging data from the client information table, the USA States table,and the city rate table with the input cities and durations of stay forthe taxpayer. Means are provided for inputting and maintaining data ineach of the tables.

(26) In a further variant, an IRS service centers table is provided. TheIRS service centers table includes an IRS mailing address for tax returnsubmission, an IRS mailing address for submitting estimated tax paymentsand an IRS ID code. The IRS service centers table is merged with thesupporting schedules to determine an address to mail either of ataxpayer's federal tax return and a taxpayer's federal estimated taxpayments to.

(27) In still a further variant, a state service centers table isprovided. The state service centers table includes a state income taxmailing address for tax return submission, a state mailing address forsubmitting estimated tax payments and a state ID code. The state servicecenter table is merged with the supporting schedules to determine anaddress to mail either of a taxpayer's state tax return and a taxpayer'sstate estimated tax payments to.

(28) In yet a further variant, a zip code table is provided. The zipcode table includes a five-digit zip code, a corresponding city, countyand state. The zip code table is used to verify the zip code input inthe client information table and to provide the taxpayer's county. Thezip code table is used to generate mailing labels for the taxpayer'sstate and federal tax returns.

(29) In another variant of the invention, an attachments table isprovided. The attachments table stores links to IRS and state taxpublication pages, tax year and work code. The attachments table iscompared to the client information table to determine appropriatepublication pages to include with the taxpayer's tax returns.

(30) In yet another variant, a meal rate percent table is provided. Themeal rate percent table includes the tax year and meal rate percent. Themeal rate percent is used to reduce the meal rate allowed.

(31) In still another variant, further supporting schedules areprovided. The further supporting schedules display a taxpayer's travelcomputations and provide means to calculate the taxpayer's traveldeduction based upon the plurality of travel calculation rates allowedby the IRS. The further supporting schedules provide means to enter theexpense reimbursements received from the taxpayer's employer. Thefurther supporting schedules provide means to optionally decline use ofthe meal rate percent table to reduce the meal rate allowed. The furthersupporting schedules provide means to print out IRS publications andrevenue procedures related to the taxpayer's occupation. The furthersupporting schedules provide means to print out an IRS rate sheet foreach city visited. The rate sheets are printed in descending order basedupon the taxpayer's travel deduction for each city visited with the cityhighlighted on each sheet.

(32) In yet another variant, a plurality of customizable documenttemplates is provided. The templates are selected by the system basedupon tax year, work code, combined meal and incidental rate, incidentalportion and full rate applied and an amended return code. The templatesincludes a taxpayer's name, Social Security number, tax year, occupationdescription, legal justification for claiming travel deductions, eachcity visited, applicable deduction for the city, a total traveldeduction figure, expense reimbursements received from the taxpayer'semployer, meal rate percent for the tax year, a meal rate percentreduction amount and a remaining amount available for deduction.

(33) In a further variant, the data relay is a transmitter co-locatedwith the GPS receiver.

(34) In still a further variant, the data collection system is acomputerized data base receiving and storing the location waypointsreceived from the coded GPS receiver at the predetermined intervals.

(35) In a final variant, the mapping system further includes a distanceadjuster. The distance adjuster permits a user to set the predetermineddistance at which a city will be considered an overnight stop for ataxpayer.

An appreciation of the other aims and objectives of the presentinvention and an understanding of it may be achieved by referring to theaccompanying drawings and the detailed description of a preferredembodiment.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of the City Rates Table used in the preferredembodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic view of the City Rates input screen;

FIG. 3 is a schematic view of the City Schedule input screen;

FIG. 4 is a schematic view of one of the supporting schedules used todetermine a net expense allowance;

FIG. 5 is a schematic view of the client information table input screen;

FIG. 6 is a schematic view of the USA States table;

FIG. 6A is a schematic view of the City Name table;

FIG. 7 is a schematic view of the Airports table;

FIG. 8 is a schematic view of the Airlines table;

FIG. 9 is a schematic view of IRS Service Centers table;

FIG. 10 is a schematic view of the State Service Centers table;

FIG. 11 is a schematic view of the Zip code table;

FIG. 12 is a schematic view of the Attachment input screen;

FIG. 13 is a schematic view of the Ship Companies input screen;

FIG. 14 is a schematic view of the Meal Rate Percent table;

FIG. 15 is a schematic view of the Ship Location table;

FIG. 16 is a schematic view of the Merchant sailor Schedule inputscreen;

FIG. 17 is a schematic view of the Ship Companies table;

FIG. 18 is a schematic view of one of the supporting schedules used toview sailor trip start and end dates;

FIG. 19 is a schematic view of the Ship Company Documents table;

FIG. 20 is a schematic view of the Ship Names table;

FIG. 21 is a schematic view of the Ship Names input screen;

FIG. 22 is a schematic view of the Sailing Schedule template screen;

FIG. 23 is a schematic view of the Ports of Call List for a ship for atax year;

FIG. 24 is a schematic view of the project task assignment input screenshowing task results;

FIG. 25 is a schematic view of the task update maintenance input screenshowing addition of new tasks;

FIG. 26 is a schematic view of a skill level assignment input screen;

FIG. 27 is a schematic view of the project task assignment input screenshowing task results and comments;

FIG. 28A is a customizable template for a merchant sailor;

FIG. 28B is a customizable template for a merchant sailor for which datahas been entered;

FIG. 28C is a customizable template for an airline pilot for which datahas been entered;

FIG. 29 is a schematic view of the GPS Receiver Correlation table;

FIG. 30 is a schematic view of the Vehicle Use table;

FIG. 31 is a schematic view of data stored in the Data CollectionSystem;

FIG. 32 is a schematic view of the City Location Cross Reference table;and

FIG. 33 is a schematic view of the Receiver Use table.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

(1) FIGS. 1-4 illustrate a system for determining travel deductions fortaxpayers who stay overnight in cities remote from their homes as partof their employment 10 that includes the following components. A cityrate table 14 is provided. The city rate table 14 identifies allowed perdiem expense rates 18 for a given tax year 106 for a plurality of cities48 as identified by a city codes 110. Means 26 are provided forinputting and maintaining data in the table 14. Means 30 are providedfor inputting cities visited 48 and durations of stay 38 for a taxpayer42. Means 46 are provided for inputting expense reimbursements 50received from the taxpayer's employer. Means 54 are provided forcalculating a total of all per diem expenses 58 based upon the city ratetable 14 and the input cities 48 and number of days of stay 38 in thecities 48. Means 62 are provided for offsetting the reimbursements 50against the total 58 to determine an incidental expense allowance 66.

(2) In a variant of the invention, as illustrated in FIG. 5, a clientinformation table 70 is provided. The client information table 70includes a taxpayer's name 42, address 74, zip code 78, Social Securitynumber 82 and a work code 86. A USA States table 90 is provided asillustrated in FIG. 6. The States table 90 includes each state's name94, a state ID code 190, a lower 48 state code 98, and an IRS centercode 102. The city rate table 14 as illustrated in FIG. 1, also includesa tax year 106, a city code 110, combined meal and incidental rate 114,full rate 118, and high cost city code 122. As illustrated in FIG. 6A, acity name table is provided. The city name table includes city code 110,city 48, state ID code 190, and country name 56. Supporting schedules126 as illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 18, are provided. The supportingschedules 126 merge data from the client information table 70, the USAStates table 90, and the city rate table 14 with the input cities 48 anddurations of stay 38 for the taxpayer 42. Means are provided forinputting and maintaining data in each of the tables 14, 70, 90, 126.

(3) In a further variant as illustrated in FIG. 7, an airport table 130is provided. The airport table 130 includes an airport identifier code134, an airport name 138, city code 142 and country name 146. When alocation is input using either of an airport identifier code 134 and anairport name 138, the appropriate city 48 is determined for use in thesupporting schedules 126.

(4) In yet a further variant of the invention as illustrated in FIG. 8,an airline table 150 is provided. The airline table 150 includes anairline name 154 and an airline ID number 158. The airline table 150permits data merged with the client information table 70 to be sorted byairline 154.

(5) In still a further variant as illustrated in FIG. 9, an IRS servicecenters table 162 is provided. The IRS service centers table 162includes an IRS mailing address for tax return submission 166, an IRSmailing address for submitting estimated tax payments 170 and an IRS IDcode 174. The IRS service centers table 162 is merged with thesupporting schedules 126 to determine an address 166, 170 to mail eitherof a taxpayer's federal tax return and a taxpayer's federal estimatedtax payments to.

(6) In another variant as illustrated in FIG. 10, a state servicecenters table 178 is provided. The state service centers table 178includes a state income tax mailing address for tax return submission182, a state mailing address for submitting estimated tax payments 186and a state ID code 190. The state service centers table 178 is mergedwith the supporting schedules 126 to determine an address 182, 186 tomail either of a taxpayer's state tax return and a taxpayer's stateestimated tax payments to.

(7) In still another variant of the invention as illustrated in FIG. 11,a zip code table 194 is provided. The zip code table 194 includes afive-digit zip code 78, a corresponding city 48, county 198 and state202. The zip code table 194 is used to verify the zip code 78 input inthe client information table 70 and to provide the taxpayer's county198. The zip code table 194 is used to generate mailing labels (notshown) for the taxpayer's state and federal tax returns.

(8) In yet another variant as illustrated in FIG. 12, an attachmentstable 210 is provided. The attachments table 210 stores links 132 to IRSand state tax publication pages, tax year 106 and work code 86. Theattachments table 210 is compared to the client information table 70 todetermine appropriate publication pages to include with the taxpayer'stax returns.

(9) In still another variant as illustrated in FIG. 14, a meal ratepercent table 214 is provided. The meal rate percent table 214 includesthe tax year 106 and meal rate percent 218. The meal rate percent 218 isused to reduce the meal rate 114 allowed.

(10) In yet another variant of the invention as illustrated in FIG. 4,further supporting schedules 126 display a taxpayer's travelcomputations and provides means to calculate the taxpayer's traveldeduction based upon the plurality of travel calculation rates allowedby the IRS. The further supporting schedules 126 provide means 46 toenter the expense reimbursements 50 received from the taxpayer'semployer. The supporting schedules 126 provide means 224 to optionallydecline use of the meal rate percent table 214 to reduce the meal rate114 allowed. The supporting schedules 126 provide means 226 to print outIRS publications and revenue procedures related to the taxpayer'soccupation. The supporting schedules 126 provide means 230 to print outan IRS rate sheet 234 for each city 48 visited. The rate sheets 234 areprinted in descending order based upon the taxpayer's travel deductionfor each city 48 visited with the city 48 highlighted on each sheet 234.

(11) In a further variant, as illustrated in FIGS. 28A, 28B and 28C, aplurality of customizable document templates 238 are provided. Thetemplates 238 are selected by the system 10 based upon tax year 106,work code 86, combined meal and incidental rate 114, incidental portion116 and full rate 118 applied and an amended return code 242. Thetemplates 238 include a taxpayer's name 42, Social Security number 82,tax year 106, occupation description 246, legal justification forclaiming travel deductions 250, each city visited 48, applicablededuction 254 for the city 48, a total travel deduction FIG. 258,expense reimbursements 50 received from the taxpayer's employer, mealrate percent 218 for the tax year 106, a meal rate percent reductionamount 262 and a remaining amount available 266 for deduction.

(12) In still a further variant as illustrated in FIG. 15, a shiplocation table 270 is provided. The ship location table 270 includescity rate codes 142 for each day of a tax year 106 for a plurality ofship name codes 274. As illustrated in FIG. 16, means 278 are providedfor inputting names of ships 282 on which a taxpayer 42 has worked andstarting 286 and ending 290 dates for work on each of the ships 282. Asillustrated in FIGS. 15 and 18, means 294 are provided for determininglocations 142 and durations of stay 38 for the taxpayer 42 based uponthe ship location table 270 and the input ship names 282 and starting286 and ending 290 dates for work on each of the ships 282.

(13) In yet a further variant as illustrated in FIG. 19, a shippingcompany documents table 298 is provided. The shipping company documentstable 298 includes a shipping company ID code 302 and a pointer to ashipping company document file name 306. A shipping companies table 310as illustrated in FIGS. 13 and 17, is provided. The shipping companiestable 310 including the shipping company ID code 302 and a shippingcompany name 314. Means 318 are provided for printing the shippingcompany document 306.

(14) In still a further variant, as illustrated in FIGS. 20 and 21, aship names table 322 is provided. The ship name table 322 includes aship name code 326, the ship name 282, the shipping ID code 302 and eachship's e-mail address 330.

(15) In another variant of the invention, as illustrated in FIGS. 1, 4,15 and 18, supporting schedules 126 merge the ships location table 270and the city rate table 14 to provide meal and incidental rates 114 andfull rates 118 for each city 48 visited. Means 338 are provided fordetermining the highest meal and incidental rates 114 and full rates 118applicable for taxpayers 42 traveling between cities 48 for at least oneday.

(16) In still another variant, as illustrated in FIG. 22, a series ofdata entry templates 342 is provided. The templates 342 include the shiplocations 142 recorded in the ship location table 270 for names of ships282 associated with each shipping company name 314. The templates 342permit rapid entry of ship locations 142 for ships 282 followingidentical routes, the routes having different starting dates.

(17) In yet another variant, as illustrated in FIG. 18, means 346 areprovided for reviewing the travel start 286 and end 290 dates for anyinput ship name 282 and tax year 106.

(18) In a further variant, as illustrated in FIGS. 15 and 16, a merchantsailor schedule table 350 is provided. The merchant sailor scheduletable 350 includes the taxpayer's name 42, the ship name 282, the tripstart date 286 and the trip end date 290 as recorded on the taxpayer'sU.S. Coast Guard Discharge Papers. The merchant sailor schedule table350 is used in conjunction with the ship location table 270 to providethe incidental portion 116 of meal rates 114 and full rates 118 for eachcity 48 visited by the taxpayer 42 in a tax year 106, as illustrated inFIG. 28B.

(19) In still a further variant of the invention, as illustrated in FIG.23, means 358 are provided for printing a ports of call statement 362illustrating the location of a ship 282 for each day of a tax year 106.

(20) In yet a further variant, as illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 16, means366 are provided for accessing the client information table 70 and themerchant sailor schedule table 350 to provide a listing of all of thetaxpayers 42 associated with any ship 282 during a tax year 106 and themeans 74 for contacting the taxpayers 42.

(21) In another variant, as illustrated in FIGS. 16 and 18, means 370are provided for displaying a chronological listing 374 of all of theU.S. Coast Guard Discharge Paper data input for the taxpayer 42 for atax year 106 to the merchant sailor schedule table 350 to determine ifany travel days are unaccounted for.

(22) In a another variant of the invention, as illustrated in FIGS.24-27, means 378 for identifying all tasks 382 associated with thepreparation of a tax return are provided as are means 386 foridentifying all results 390 associated with the performance of the tasks382. Means 394 are provided for linking the results 390 to a subsequenttask 382. Means 398 are provided for determining the skill level 402 ofa tax preparation worker 406 required to complete each task 382 as aremeans for identifying the skill level 402 of each tax preparation worker406. Means 410 are provided for assigning each uncompleted task 382 toworkers 406 of the required skill level 402 as are means 414 forindicating which worker 406 will work on each task 382. Means 418 areprovided for indicating completion of each task 382 for removal from thesystem 10.

(23) In still another variant, the means 30 for inputting cities visited48 and durations of stay 38 for a taxpayer 42 further includes a globalpositioning system (GPS) receiver 422 affixed to a taxpayer's vehicle426. The vehicle 426 has a unique vehicle identification number 430 andthe receiver 422 has a unique receiver code 434. The GPS receiver 422receives location waypoints 438 for the receiver 422. A GPS receivercorrelation table 442 is provided. The correlation table 442 includesthe vehicle identification number 430 and the receiver code 434. Avehicle use table 446 is provided. The vehicle use table 446 includesthe taxpayer's name 42, Social Security number 82, vehicleidentification numbers 430 and dates of use 450 for each of the vehicleidentification numbers 430. Means 454 are provided for inputting andmaintaining data in the tables 442, 446.

A data relay 458 is provided. The data relay 458 passes locationwaypoints 438 received from the coded GPS receiver 422 to a datacollection system 462 at predetermined intervals 466. A mapping system470 is provided. The mapping system 470 accesses the data collectionsystem 462 and the city rate table 14 and determines and stores ahighest per diem cost city code 122 within a predetermined distance 474of the waypoints 438 during a given day for each of the receiver codes434. A data analysis system 478 is provided. The analysis system 478accesses the GPS receiver correlation table 442, the vehicle use table446 and the mapping system 470 to determine and store the highest perdiem cost city code 122 for the taxpayer 42 for each day of a tax year106.

(24) In a further variant of the invention, a global positioning system(GPS) receiver 422 is carried by a traveling taxpayer 42. The receiver422 has a unique receiver code 434. The GPS receiver 422 receiveslocation waypoints 438 for the receiver 422. A receiver use table 482 isprovided. The receiver use table 482 includes the taxpayer's name 42,Social Security number 82, GPS receiver code 434 and dates of use 450for each of the receiver codes 434. Means 454 are provided for inputtingand maintaining data in the receiver use table 482. A data relay 458 isprovided. The data relay 458 passes location waypoints 438 received fromthe coded GPS receiver 422 to a data collection system 462 atpredetermined intervals 466. A mapping system 470 is provided. Themapping system 470 accesses the data collection system 462 and the cityrate table 14 and determines and stores a highest per diem cost citycode 122 within a predetermined distance 474 of the waypoints 438 duringa given day for each of the receiver codes 434. A data analysis system478 is provided. The data analysis system 478 accesses the receiver usetable 482 and the mapping system 470 to determine and store the highestper diem cost city code 122 for the taxpayer 42 for each day of a taxyear 106.

(24) In a variant of the invention, as illustrated in FIG. 5, a clientinformation table 70 is provided. The client information table 70includes a taxpayer's name 42, address 74, zip code 78, Social Securitynumber 82 and a work code 86. A USA States table 90 is provided asillustrated in FIG. 6. The States table 90 includes each state's name94, a state ID code 190, a lower 48 state code 98, and an IRS centercode 102. The city rate table 14 as illustrated in FIG. 1, also includesa tax year 106, a city code 110, combined meal and incidental rate 114,full rate 118, and high cost city code 122. As illustrated in FIG. 6A, acity name table is provided. The city name table includes city code 110,city 48, state ID code 190, and country name 56. Supporting schedules126 as illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 18, are provided. The supportingschedules 126 merge data from the client information table 70, the USAStates table 90, and the city rate table 14 with the input cities 48 anddurations of stay 38 for the taxpayer 42. Means are provided forinputting and maintaining data in each of the tables 14, 70, 90, 126.

(25) In still a further variant as illustrated in FIG. 9, an IRS servicecenters table 162 is provided. The IRS service centers table 162includes an IRS mailing address for tax return submission 166, an IRSmailing address for submitting estimated tax payments 170 and an IRS IDcode 174. The IRS service centers table 162 is merged with thesupporting schedules 126 to determine an address 166, 170 to mail eitherof a taxpayer's federal tax return and a taxpayer's federal estimatedtax payments to.

(26) In another variant as illustrated in FIG. 10, a state servicecenters table 178 is provided. The state service centers table 178includes a state income tax mailing address for tax return submission182, a state mailing address for submitting estimated tax payments 186and a state ID code 190. The state service centers table 178 is mergedwith the supporting schedules 126 to determine an address 182, 186 tomail either of a taxpayer's state tax return and a taxpayer's stateestimated tax payments to.

(27) In still another variant of the invention as illustrated in FIG.11, a zip code table 194 is provided. The zip code table 194 includes afive-digit zip code 78, a corresponding city 48, county 198 and state202. The zip code table 194 is used to verify the zip code 78 input inthe client information table 70 and to provide the taxpayer's county198. The zip code table 194 is used to generate mailing labels (notshown) for the taxpayer's state and federal tax returns.

(28) In yet another variant as illustrated in FIG. 12, an attachmentstable 210 is provided. The attachments table 210 stores links 132 to IRSand state tax publication pages, tax year 106 and work code 86. Theattachments table 210 is compared to the client information table 70 todetermine appropriate publication pages to include with the taxpayer'stax returns.

(29) In still another variant as illustrated in FIG. 14, a meal ratepercent table 214 is provided. The meal rate percent table 214 includesthe tax year 106 and meal rate percent 218. The meal rate percent 218 isused to reduce the meal rate 114 allowed.

(30) In yet another variant of the invention as illustrated in FIG. 4,further supporting schedules 126 display a taxpayer's travelcomputations and provides means to calculate the taxpayer's traveldeduction based upon the plurality of travel calculation rates allowedby the IRS. The further supporting schedules 126 provide means 46 toenter the expense reimbursements 50 received from the taxpayer'semployer. The supporting schedules 126 provide means 224 to optionallydecline use of the meal rate percent table 214 to reduce the meal rate114 allowed. The supporting schedules 126 provide means 226 to print outIRS publications and revenue procedures related to the taxpayer'soccupation. The supporting schedules 126 provide means 230 to print outan IRS rate sheet 234 for each city 48 visited. The rate sheets 234 areprinted in descending order based upon the taxpayer's travel deductionfor each city 48 visited with the city 48 highlighted on each sheet 234.

(31) In a further variant, as illustrated in FIGS. 28A, 28B and 28C, aplurality of customizable document templates 238 are provided. Thetemplates 238 are selected by the system 10 based upon tax year 106,work code 86, combined meal and incidental rate 114, incidental portion116 and full rate 118 applied and an amended return code 242. Thetemplates 238 include a taxpayer's name 42, Social Security number 82,tax year 106, occupation description 246, legal justification forclaiming travel deductions 250, each city visited 48, applicablededuction 254 for the city 48, a total travel deduction FIG. 258,expense reimbursements 50 received from the taxpayer's employer, mealrate percent 218 for the tax year 106, a meal rate percent reductionamount 262 and a remaining amount available 266 for deduction.

(32) In a further variant, the data relay is a transmitter co-locatedwith the GPS receiver.

(33) In still a further variant, the data collection system 462 is acomputerized data base 482 receiving and storing the location waypoints438 received from the coded GPS receiver 422 at the predeterminedintervals 466.

(34) In a final variant, the mapping system 470 further includes adistance adjuster 486. The distance adjuster 486 permits a user 490 toset the predetermined distance 474 at which a city 48 will be consideredan overnight stop 494 for a taxpayer 42.

The income tax preparation system for traveling taxpayers 10 has beendescribed with reference to particular embodiments. Other modificationsand enhancements can be made without departing from the spirit and scopeof the claims that follow.

1. A system for determining travel deductions for taxpayers who stayovernight in cities remote from their homes as part of their employment,comprising: a city rate table identifying allowed per diem expense ratesfor a given tax year for a plurality of cities as identified by a citycode; means for inputting and maintaining data in said table; means forinputting cities visited and durations of stay for a taxpayer; means forinputting expense reimbursements received from the taxpayer's employer;means for calculating a total of all per diem expenses based upon saidcity rate table and the input cities and number of days of stay in saidcities; and means for offsetting the reimbursements against said totalto determine an incidental expense allowance.
 2. A system fordetermining travel deductions for taxpayers who stay overnight inlocations remote from their homes as part of their employment asdescribed in claim 1, further comprising: a client information table,said information table comprising a taxpayer's name, address, zip code,Social Security number and a work code; a USA States table, said Statestable comprising each state's name, a state ID code, a lower 48 statecode, and an IRS center code; said city rate table further comprising atax year, a city code, combined meal and incidental rate, full rate, andhigh cost city code; a city name table, said city name table comprisingsaid city code, said city, said state ID code, and a country name;supporting schedules, said supporting schedules merging data from saidclient information table, said USA States table, and said city ratetable with the input cities and durations of stay for the taxpayer; andmeans for inputting and maintaining data in each of said tables.
 3. Asystem for determining travel deductions for taxpayers who stayovernight in locations remote from their homes as part of theiremployment as described in claim 2, further comprising: an airporttable, said airport table comprising an airport identifier code, anairport name, city code and country name; and whereby, when a locationis input using either of an airport identifier code and an airport name,the appropriate city is determined for use in said supporting schedules.4. A system for determining travel deductions for taxpayers who stayovernight in locations remote from their homes as part of theiremployment as described in claim 2, further comprising: an airlinestable, said airlines table comprising an airline name and an airline IDnumber; and said airlines table permitting data merged with the clientinformation table to be sorted by airline.
 5. A system for determiningtravel deductions for taxpayers who stay overnight in locations remotefrom their homes as part of their employment as described in claim 2,further comprising: an IRS service centers table, said IRS servicecenters table comprising an IRS mailing address for tax returnsubmission, an IRS mailing address for submitting estimated tax paymentsand an IRS ID code; and said IRS service centers table being merged withsaid supporting schedules to determine an address to mail either of ataxpayer's federal tax return and a taxpayer's federal estimated taxpayments to.
 6. A system for determining travel deductions for taxpayerswho stay overnight in locations remote from their homes as part of theiremployment as described in claim 2, further comprising: a state servicecenters table, said state service centers table comprising a stateincome tax mailing address for tax return submission, a state mailingaddress for submitting estimated tax payments and a state ID code; andsaid state service center table being merged with said supportingschedules to determine an address to mail either of a taxpayer's statetax return and a taxpayer's state estimated tax payments to.
 7. A systemfor determining travel deductions for taxpayers who stay overnight inlocations remote from their homes as part of their employment asdescribed in claim 2, further comprising: a zip code table, said zipcode table comprising a five-digit zip code, a corresponding city,county and state; said zip code table being used to verify the zip codeinput in the client information table and to provide the taxpayer'scounty; and said zip code table being used to generate mailing labelsfor the taxpayer's state and federal tax returns.
 8. A system fordetermining travel deductions for taxpayers who stay overnight inlocations remote from their homes as part of their employment asdescribed in claim 2, further comprising: an attachments table, saidattachments table storing links to IRS and state tax publication pages,tax year and work code; and said attachments table being compared to theclient information table to determine appropriate publication pages toinclude with the taxpayer's tax returns.
 9. A system for determiningtravel deductions for taxpayers who stay overnight in locations remotefrom their homes as part of their employment as described in claim 2,further comprising: a meal rate percent table, said meal rate percenttable comprising the tax year and meal rate percent; and said meal ratepercent being used to reduce the meal rate allowed.
 10. A system fordetermining travel deductions for taxpayers who stay overnight inlocations remote from their homes as part of their employment asdescribed in claim 9, further comprising: further supporting schedules,said further supporting schedules displaying a taxpayer's travelcomputations and providing means to calculate the taxpayer's traveldeduction based upon the plurality of travel calculation rates allowedby the IRS; said further supporting schedules providing means to enterthe expense reimbursements received from the taxpayer's employer; saidfurther supporting schedules providing means to optionally decline useof the meal rate percent table to reduce the meal rate allowed; saidfurther supporting schedules providing means to print out IRSpublications and revenue procedures related to the taxpayer'soccupation; and said further supporting schedules providing means toprint out an IRS rate sheet for each city visited; and said rate sheetsare printed in descending order based upon the taxpayer's traveldeduction for each city visited with the city highlighted on each sheet.11. A system for determining travel deductions for taxpayers who stayovernight in locations remote from their homes as part of theiremployment as described in claim 10, further comprising: a plurality ofcustomizable document templates, said templates being selected by thesystem based upon tax year, work code, combined meal and incidentalrate, incidental portion and full rate applied and an amended returncode; and said templates comprising a taxpayer's name, Social Securitynumber, tax year, occupation description, legal justification forclaiming travel deductions, each city visited, applicable deduction forsaid city, a total travel deduction figure, expense reimbursementsreceived from the taxpayer's employer, meal rate percent for the taxyear, a meal rate percent reduction amount and a remaining amountavailable for deduction.
 12. A system for determining travel deductionsfor taxpayers who stay overnight in locations remote from their homes aspart of their employment as described in claim 2, in which the means forinputting remote travel locations visited and durations of stay for ataxpayer further comprises: a ship location table, said ship locationtable including city rate codes for each day of a tax year for aplurality of ship name codes; means for inputting names of ships onwhich a taxpayer has worked and starting and ending dates for work oneach of said ships; and means for determining locations and durations ofstay for the taxpayer based upon the ship location table and the inputship names and starting and ending dates for work on each of said ships.13. A system for determining travel deductions for taxpayers who stayovernight in locations remote from their homes as part of theiremployment as described in claim 12, further comprising: a shippingcompany documents table, said shipping company documents table includinga shipping company ID code and a pointer to a shipping company documentfile name; a shipping companies table, said shipping companies tableincluding the shipping company ID code, a shipping company name andmeans for printing said shipping company document.
 14. A system fordetermining travel deductions for taxpayers who stay overnight inlocations remote from their homes as part of their employment asdescribed in claim 13, further comprising a ship names table, said shipname table including the ship name code, a ship name, a shipping companyID code and each ship's e-mail address.
 15. A system for determiningtravel deductions for taxpayers who stay overnight in locations remotefrom their homes as part of their employment as described in claim 14,further comprising: other supporting schedules, said other supportingschedules merging the ship location table and the city rate table toprovide meal and incidental rates and full rates for each city visited;and means for determining the highest meal and incidental rates and fullrates applicable for taxpayers traveling between cities for more thanone day.
 16. A system for determining travel deductions for taxpayerswho stay overnight in locations remote from their homes as part of theiremployment as described in claim 15, further comprising: a series ofdata entry templates, said templates including the ship locationsrecorded in the ship location table for names of ships associated witheach shipping company name; and said templates permitting rapid entry ofship locations for ships following identical routes, said routes havingdifferent starting dates.
 17. A system for determining travel deductionsfor taxpayers who stay overnight in locations remote from their homes aspart of their employment as described in claim 12, further comprisingmeans for reviewing the travel start and end dates for any input shipname and tax year.
 18. A system for determining travel deductions fortaxpayers who stay overnight in locations remote from their homes aspart of their employment as described in claim 15, further comprising: amerchant sailor schedule table, said merchant sailor schedule tableincluding the taxpayer's name, the ship name, the trip start date andthe trip end as recorded on the taxpayer's U.S. Coast Guard DischargePapers; and said merchant sailor schedule table being used inconjunction with the ship location table to provide the incidentalportion of meal rates and full rates for each city visited by thetaxpayer in a tax year.
 19. A system for determining travel deductionsfor taxpayers who stay overnight in locations remote from their homes aspart of their employment as described in claim 12, further comprisingmeans for printing a ports of call statement illustrating the locationof a ship for each day of a tax year.
 20. A system for determiningtravel deductions for taxpayers who stay overnight in locations remotefrom their homes as part of their employment as described in claim 12,further comprising means for accessing the client information table andthe merchant sailor schedule table to provide a listing of all of thetaxpayers associated with any ship during a tax year and the means forcontacting said taxpayers.
 21. A system for determining traveldeductions for taxpayers who stay overnight in locations remote fromtheir homes as part of their employment as described in claim 18,further comprising means for displaying a chronological listing of allof the U.S. Coast Guard Discharge Paper data input for the taxpayer fora tax year and comparing to the merchant sailor schedule table todetermine if any travel days are unaccounted for.
 22. A system fordetermining travel deductions for taxpayers who stay overnight inlocations remote from their homes as part of their employment asdescribed in claim 1, further comprising: means for identifying alltasks associated with the preparation of a tax return; means foridentifying all results associated with the performance of said tasks;means for linking said results to a subsequent task; means fordetermining the skill level of a tax preparation worker required tocomplete each task; means for identifying the skill level of each taxpreparation worker; means for assigning each uncompleted task to workersof the required skill level; means for indicating which worker will workon each task; and means for indicating completion of each task forremoval from the system.
 23. The system for determining traveldeductions for taxpayers who stay overnight in locations remote fromtheir homes as part of their employment as described in claim 1, inwhich the means for inputting cities visited and durations of stay for ataxpayer further comprises: a global positioning system (GPS) receiveraffixed to a taxpayer's vehicle, said vehicle having a unique vehicleidentification number and said receiver having a unique receiver code;said GPS receiver receiving location waypoint information for saidreceiver; a GPS receiver correlation table, said correlation tablecomprising said vehicle identification number and said receiver code; avehicle use table, said vehicle use table comprising said taxpayer'sname, Social Security number, vehicle identification numbers and datesof use for each of said vehicle identification numbers; means forinputting and maintaining data in said tables; a data relay, said datarelay passing location waypoints received from said coded GPS receiverto a data collection system at predetermined intervals; a mappingsystem, said mapping system accessing said data collection system andsaid city rate table and determining and storing a highest per diem costcity code within a predetermined distance of said waypoints during agiven day for each of said receiver codes; and a data analysis system,said analysis system accessing said GPS receiver correlation table, saidvehicle use table and said mapping system to determine and store saidhighest per diem cost city code for said taxpayer for each day of a taxyear.
 24. The system for determining travel deductions for taxpayers whostay overnight in locations remote from their homes as part of theiremployment as described in claim 1, in which the means for inputtingcities visited and durations of stay for a taxpayer further comprises: aglobal positioning system (GPS) receiver carried by a travelingtaxpayer, said receiver having a unique receiver code; said GPS receiverreceiving location waypoint information for said receiver; a receiveruse table, said receiver use table comprising said taxpayer's name,Social Security number, GPS receiver code and dates of use for each ofsaid receiver codes; means for inputting and maintaining data in saidtable; a data relay, said data relay passing location waypoints receivedfrom said coded GPS receiver to a data collection system atpredetermined intervals; a mapping system, said mapping system accessingsaid data collection system and said city rate table and determining andstoring a highest per diem cost city code within a predetermineddistance of said waypoints during a given day for each of said receivercodes; and a data analysis system, said analysis system accessing saidreceiver use table and said mapping system to determine and store saidhighest per diem cost city code for said taxpayer for each day of a taxyear.
 25. The system for determining travel deductions for taxpayers whostay overnight in locations remote from their homes as part of theiremployment as described in claim 23 or claim 24, further comprising: aclient information table, said information table comprising a taxpayer'sname, address, zip code, Social Security number and a work code; a USAStates table, said States table comprising each state's name, a state IDcode, a lower 48 state code, and an IRS center code; said city ratetable further comprising a tax year, a city code, combined meal andincidental rate, full rate, and high cost city code; a city name table,said city name table comprising said city code, said city, said state IDcode, and a country name; supporting schedules, said supportingschedules merging data from said client information table, said USAStates table, and said city rate table with the input cities anddurations of stay for the taxpayer; and means for inputting andmaintaining data in each of said tables.
 26. The system for determiningtravel deductions for taxpayers who stay overnight in locations remotefrom their homes as part of their employment as described in claim 23 orclaim 24, further comprising: an IRS service centers table, said IRSservice centers table comprising an IRS mailing address for tax returnsubmission, an IRS mailing address for submitting estimated tax paymentsand an IRS ID code; and said IRS service centers table being merged withsaid supporting schedules to determine an address to mail either of ataxpayer's federal tax return and a taxpayer's federal estimated taxpayments to.
 27. The system for determining travel deductions fortaxpayers who stay overnight in locations remote from their homes aspart of their employment as described in claim 23 or claim 24, furthercomprising: a state service centers table, said state service centerstable comprising a state income tax mailing address for tax returnsubmission, a state mailing address for submitting estimated taxpayments and a state ID code; and said state service center table beingmerged with said supporting schedules to determine an address to maileither of a taxpayer's state tax return and a taxpayer's state estimatedtax payments to.
 28. The system for determining travel deductions fortaxpayers who stay overnight in locations remote from their homes aspart of their employment as described in claim 23 or claim 24, furthercomprising: a zip code table, said zip code table comprising afive-digit zip code, a corresponding city, county and state; said zipcode table being used to verify the zip code input in the clientinformation table and to provide the taxpayer's county; and said zipcode table being used to generate mailing labels for the taxpayer'sstate and federal tax returns.
 29. The system for determining traveldeductions for taxpayers who stay overnight in locations remote fromtheir homes as part of their employment as described in claim 23 orclaim 24, further comprising: an attachments table, said attachmentstable storing links to IRS and state tax publication pages, tax year andwork code; and said attachments table being compared to the clientinformation table to determine appropriate publication pages to includewith the taxpayer's tax returns.
 30. The system for determining traveldeductions for taxpayers who stay overnight in locations remote fromtheir homes as part of their employment as described in claim 23 orclaim 24, further comprising: a meal rate percent table, said meal ratepercent table comprising the tax year and meal rate percent; and saidmeal rate percent being used to reduce the meal rate allowed.
 31. Thesystem for determining travel deductions for taxpayers who stayovernight in locations remote from their homes as part of theiremployment as described in claim 30, further comprising: furthersupporting schedules, said further supporting schedules displaying ataxpayer's travel computations and providing means to calculate thetaxpayer's travel deduction based upon the plurality of travelcalculation rates allowed by the IRS; said further supporting schedulesproviding means to enter the expense reimbursements received from thetaxpayer's employer; said further supporting schedules providing meansto optionally decline use of the meal rate percent table to reduce themeal rate allowed; said further supporting schedules providing means toprint out IRS publications and revenue procedures related to thetaxpayer's occupation; and said further supporting schedules providingmeans to print out an IRS rate sheet for each city visited; and saidrate sheets are printed in descending order based upon the taxpayer'stravel deduction for each city visited with the city highlighted on eachsheet.
 32. The system for determining travel deductions for taxpayerswho stay overnight in locations remote from their homes as part of theiremployment as described in claim 31, further comprising: a plurality ofcustomizable document templates, said templates being selected by thesystem based upon tax year, work code, combined meal and incidentalrate, incidental portion and full rate applied and an amended returncode; and said templates comprising a taxpayer's name, Social Securitynumber, tax year, occupation description, legal justification forclaiming travel deductions, each city visited, applicable deduction forsaid city, a total travel deduction figure, expense reimbursementsreceived from the taxpayer's employer, meal rate percent for the taxyear, a meal rate percent reduction amount and a remaining amountavailable for deduction.
 33. The system for determining traveldeductions for taxpayers who stay overnight in locations remote fromtheir homes as part of their employment as described in claim 23 orclaim 24, wherein said data relay is a transmitter co-located with saidGPS receiver.
 34. The system for determining travel deductions fortaxpayers who stay overnight in locations remote from their homes aspart of their employment as described in claim 23 or claim 24, whereinsaid data collection system is a computerized data base receiving andstoring said location waypoints received from said coded GPS receiver atsaid predetermined intervals.
 35. The system for determining traveldeductions for taxpayers who stay overnight in locations remote fromtheir homes as part of their employment as described in claim 23 orclaim 24, wherein said mapping system further comprises a distanceadjuster, said distance adjuster permitting a user to set saidpredetermined distance at which a city will be considered an overnightstop for a taxpayer.